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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Violence
I liked Everlasting Nora! I really felt for Nora, and she has a lot to deal with. There's something very hopeful about this book, and I definitely finished the book feeling like everything was going to work out for Nora and her mom.
I can't imagine what it's like to live in a shany town set up in a cemetery. Even though everyone seems to be living where they have family members buried, I wonder if that's the case for everyone, and how it works if it's not a family member and their family comes to visit?
We do see in one or two scenes where they have to move so that they're not seen at a funeral service. Granted, it was at a different cemetery than the one Nora lives at but it still highlighted things that Nora possibly had to deal with. That was an interesting detail, and it made the book seem more real somehow.
She has to rely on others when her mom disappears in order to pay off her gambling debts. Nora has to help out too, and I felt so sad that she had to leave school when her father died, and they ran out of the money they had after his death.
We see the difference between having money and having nothing and needing to help out by working in order to survive. It's not a new concept for middle grade or YA, but I liked the setting of living in a graveyard. It showed that life is different in other countries, and that everyone is going through something.
I'm glad things got better for Nora, and I hope things continue to work out for Nora and her mom.
My Rating: 3 stars. I wish I had more to say about Everlasting Nora, but it don't. It's pretty hopeful, and I definitely recommend it.
I can't imagine what it's like to live in a shany town set up in a cemetery. Even though everyone seems to be living where they have family members buried, I wonder if that's the case for everyone, and how it works if it's not a family member and their family comes to visit?
We do see in one or two scenes where they have to move so that they're not seen at a funeral service. Granted, it was at a different cemetery than the one Nora lives at but it still highlighted things that Nora possibly had to deal with. That was an interesting detail, and it made the book seem more real somehow.
She has to rely on others when her mom disappears in order to pay off her gambling debts. Nora has to help out too, and I felt so sad that she had to leave school when her father died, and they ran out of the money they had after his death.
We see the difference between having money and having nothing and needing to help out by working in order to survive. It's not a new concept for middle grade or YA, but I liked the setting of living in a graveyard. It showed that life is different in other countries, and that everyone is going through something.
I'm glad things got better for Nora, and I hope things continue to work out for Nora and her mom.
My Rating: 3 stars. I wish I had more to say about Everlasting Nora, but it don't. It's pretty hopeful, and I definitely recommend it.
Wow! What a powerful book! I absolutely adored Nora and how friendship plays a key role in the story. The book shows how even the smallest acts of kindness can make a difference in someone’s life. It’s wonderful how Nora learns to appreciate the people around her and never loses hope.
a sweet story of family, born & found, but unrelentingly stressful.
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A great story about a twelve-year- old girl named Nora, who due to unfortunate circumstances lives in a cemetery with her mother. When her mother goes missing and a gang robs her home, Nora is assisted by her best friend and his grandmother to find her. The story is very heart-warming and I got to learn more about the Philippines through Nora's eyes.
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was a lot more depressing and serious than I thought it would be. Overall it has a good message about the importance of family and keeping hope alive. If you listen to the audio book you also get a segment where they interview the Marie Miranda Cruz. (The author.) That was enjoyable.
I received an ARC of this book, which is being released in October. Twelve-year-old Nora lives in a cemetery with her mother in The Philippines. Her mother turns to gambling to pay their bills, but then mysteriously disappears one night. Nora is independent and resilient, but she also learns to accept help along the way. The theme of inequity in education appears throughout, and I enjoyed how food and cultural pride were tied to her happy family memories.
This is so Pinoy!
After a careful deliberation on what my next read would be, I picked Everlasting Nora from my towering TBR hoping I would taste a familiar flavor and gladly, this book delivered.
Everlasting Nora is a MG novel about Nora, an 11-year old girl (I based the age on her school status, G6) who lives in Manila North Cemetery after a series of unfortunate events happened in her life. With her mother as her only someone in the busy community of MNC, Nora is doing her best in finding a way to eke out a living by selling garland necklace for the cemetery passersby and doing laundry to one of the families outside the MNC. But the wind of fate worsen when Nora's Mama suddenly disappeared after an all-night mahjong session and made Nora embark on a journey of finding her strengths, weaknesses, courage, and family and friends as she unravel the reality of life.
The fact that this book features Filipino characters in a setting so familiar to us made me picked this book up immediately. I'm glad that Marie Miranda Cruz wrote Everlasting Nora because Pinoy children needs to have Pinoy books to read that mirrors not just their own culture but the reality of life in the other side of the spectrum. Cruz is brave in portraying this kind of life because this is how the majority of poor Filipinos live survive in a day-to-day basis.
Everything about this spoke nothing but the truth. The poverty, the harsh reality, the hardship of living as one in the lowest tier of the society with no concrete government aid to access education, health facilities, and some other basic necessities. This is Philippines and mabuhay!
What I really loved about this novel is amid all the depictions of the real Philippines, it also showed the genuineness of Pinot tradition and culture. Like helping your neighbors in times of need, and respecting the elderlies, and even the never-say-die spirit of Nora who continue to work hard in spite of the hurdles she encountered in her young life. Truly, Nora is a child with wisdom beyond her years.
RATING: 4stars
After a careful deliberation on what my next read would be, I picked Everlasting Nora from my towering TBR hoping I would taste a familiar flavor and gladly, this book delivered.
Everlasting Nora is a MG novel about Nora, an 11-year old girl (I based the age on her school status, G6) who lives in Manila North Cemetery after a series of unfortunate events happened in her life. With her mother as her only someone in the busy community of MNC, Nora is doing her best in finding a way to eke out a living by selling garland necklace for the cemetery passersby and doing laundry to one of the families outside the MNC. But the wind of fate worsen when Nora's Mama suddenly disappeared after an all-night mahjong session and made Nora embark on a journey of finding her strengths, weaknesses, courage, and family and friends as she unravel the reality of life.
The fact that this book features Filipino characters in a setting so familiar to us made me picked this book up immediately. I'm glad that Marie Miranda Cruz wrote Everlasting Nora because Pinoy children needs to have Pinoy books to read that mirrors not just their own culture but the reality of life in the other side of the spectrum. Cruz is brave in portraying this kind of life because this is how the majority of poor Filipinos live survive in a day-to-day basis.
Everything about this spoke nothing but the truth. The poverty, the harsh reality, the hardship of living as one in the lowest tier of the society with no concrete government aid to access education, health facilities, and some other basic necessities. This is Philippines and mabuhay!
What I really loved about this novel is amid all the depictions of the real Philippines, it also showed the genuineness of Pinot tradition and culture. Like helping your neighbors in times of need, and respecting the elderlies, and even the never-say-die spirit of Nora who continue to work hard in spite of the hurdles she encountered in her young life. Truly, Nora is a child with wisdom beyond her years.
RATING: 4stars